Orbán re-elected as Hungarian opposition leader

Viktor Orbán, former prime minister and long-term leader of Hungary's main opposition party Fidesz, was reappointed as party chairman on Sunday after running unopposed.

Orbán, 43, received 1,608 votes for and only 39 against. The charismatic leader, who was a prominent anti-communist dissident during the 1980s, is viewed by many as being synonymous with the party itself. However, his position as party leader was considered in doubt last April after Fidesz lost its second general election in a row. Orbán was then boosted by a political scandal involving Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány, whose admission that he lied about the state of the economy prompted anti-government protests and riots. The Fidesz chairman led his party to a sweeping victory in local elections last October and has since attempted to keep up the pressure on Gyurcsány to resign, calling his government illegitimate. Orbán, in a speech after being re-elected, said that Fidesz was Hungary's “last chance and hope.” (monstersandcritics.com)

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